BCBA Foundations Glossary
Key terms and definitions for Philosophical Underpinnings, Concepts & Principles.
Radical Behaviorism
B.F. Skinner's philosophy of science that considers all behavior, including private events (thoughts and feelings), as subject to the same laws as publicly observable behavior.
Determinism
The assumption that the universe is a lawful and orderly place in which all events, including behavior, are determined by prior causes.
Empiricism
The practice of relying on observation and experimentation rather than speculation or authority to acquire knowledge.
Parsimony
The scientific principle of preferring the simplest explanation that accounts for the observed phenomena.
Operant Conditioning
A learning process in which behavior is modified by its consequences. Behavior followed by reinforcement increases; behavior followed by punishment decreases.
Respondent Conditioning
A learning process in which a neutral stimulus is paired with an unconditioned stimulus until the neutral stimulus alone elicits a conditioned response (also called classical or Pavlovian conditioning).
Three-Term Contingency
The fundamental unit of analysis in operant conditioning: antecedent, behavior, and consequence (A-B-C).
Positive Reinforcement
The presentation of a stimulus following a behavior that increases the future probability of that behavior.
Negative Reinforcement
The removal or avoidance of an aversive stimulus following a behavior that increases the future probability of that behavior.
Motivating Operation (MO)
An environmental variable that alters the reinforcing or punishing effectiveness of a consequence and alters the current frequency of behavior associated with that consequence.
Establishing Operation (EO)
A type of motivating operation that increases the reinforcing effectiveness of a stimulus and increases the frequency of behavior that has produced that stimulus.
Abolishing Operation (AO)
A type of motivating operation that decreases the reinforcing effectiveness of a stimulus and decreases the frequency of behavior that has produced that stimulus.
Stimulus Control
A situation in which the frequency, latency, duration, or amplitude of a behavior is altered by the presence or absence of an antecedent stimulus.
Mand
A verbal operant in which the response is reinforced by a specific consequence and is under the functional control of motivating operations (essentially, a request).
Tact
A verbal operant in which a response is evoked by a nonverbal stimulus and is maintained by generalized conditioned reinforcement (essentially, labeling).
Intraverbal
A verbal operant in which a verbal stimulus evokes a verbal response that does not have point-to-point correspondence with the stimulus (e.g., answering questions, completing fill-in-the-blanks).
Echoic
A verbal operant in which the response has point-to-point correspondence and formal similarity with the verbal stimulus that evokes it (vocal imitation).
Schedule of Reinforcement
A rule specifying which instances of a behavior will be reinforced. Common schedules include fixed ratio, variable ratio, fixed interval, and variable interval.
Stimulus Generalization
The tendency for a behavior reinforced in the presence of one stimulus to also occur in the presence of similar stimuli.
Stimulus Discrimination
The process by which organisms learn to respond differently in the presence of different stimuli.